wharton



1 (No Model.) 2 eeeeeeeeeeee 1.

W. WHARTON, Jr.

. RAILWAY onossme.

No. 359,116. Patented Mar. 8, 1887;

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. WHARTON, Jr.

v RAILWAY onossme. No. 359,116.

Patented Mar. 8, 1887.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM WHARTON, JE, on PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO WILLIAM WHARTON, JR, & 00., (LIllIlTED,) or SAME PLACE.

RAlLWAY -CROSSlNG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 359,116, dated Liarcll 8, 1887,

Application filed November 9, 1886. Serial No. 219,384. (No model.)

To aZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM WHARTON, J r., a citizen of the United States, residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Railroad-Crossings,

of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to construct a railroad-erossing of four rails, thus dispensing with the usual heavy crossing-castings now used extensively in street-railways, and with the complicated stcam-railway crossing formed of a number of small pieces of rails.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a perspective view of my improved railway I5 crossing. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 1 2, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3 4, Fig. l; and Figs. 4 and 5 are perspective views of two rails detached from each other.

A A are the rails of one track, B B the rails of another track crossing at an angle thereto. In the drawings I have shown the tracks as crossing at right angles; but I do not limit my invention to right-angled cross lugs.

The rails illustrated in the drawings have very high webs, intended more especially for street-railways, and are adapted to be fastened directly to the crosstics by means of chairs, thus dispensing with the usual wooden stringers.

The rails A A are transversely slotted on their under sides at a a to about one'half their height, portions of the bases and webs being cut away. The rails B B are transversely slotted at their upper sides at b 7), portions of the heads and webs being cut away. The rails A A and B B are then fitted together or halved, the upper portionof the web of the railsAAfitting into the slots 1) and the lower portion of the web of the rails B B fittinginto 0 the slots a in the rails A A, thus forming a 'neat and strong halved joint. Each of the rails is grooved at 0, adjacent to thejoint, to allow for the passage of the flanges of the carwheels.

Under each of the halved joints I prefer to place a baseplate, I), as shown in Fig. 1. This plate has tapering undercut ribs d on the upper surface, between which and the dovetailed bases of the rails tapered wedges are go inserted for securing the rails firmly in place and to the baseplates D.

The rails maybe secured at the joints by angle fish-plates or elbow-pieces; but I prefer in all cases to use the base-plate D, whether 5 the angle fish-plates or elbow-pieces are used or not. By this construction I am enabled to form a erossingof ordinary girder orweb rails without interfering with the continuity of the tracks, and at the same time a very strong, 6) neat, and simple crossing is produced, which can be readily put down and easily repaired.

I claim as my invention- The railway-girder crossing composed of four rails halved together at the joints, sub stantially as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses- XVILLIAM IVHA RTON, JR.

lVitnesses:

HARRY SMrrH, HENRY HowsoN. 

